Who am I? I am a champion!

My much needed new shoes were so ready to go today that they practically jumped out of the gym bag. Boy they felt good!  Eagerly I jumped onto the treadmill, cranked up my Ipod, and started to run.   The new shoes felt so good that I started running faster, and then faster, and then the fastest I've ever run.  Then, fifteen minutes in I felt something bad in my right quad and had to stop.  I hobbled off the treadmill and over to where my brother was working out to stretch my leg out.

Seeing me limping, Jeff came over to inquire, "Does it hurt?"

"Only when I move it." I responded then realized how dumb that sounded.

I looked around the gym, not ready to throw in the towel but acknowledging that the bike and the elliptical machines, and pretty much anything involving legs was out.   Then my eyes fell on my old pal the punching bag.  Cranking the music up again, I proceeded to pound the heck out of that bag until I felt like my arms were going to fall off.  Where there's a will, there is a way.

One of the best things I've heard in a long time is a speech by a high school football coach, pumping up his team.  If you want to get rallied, take about three minutes and check this out: I am a champion!  Some of the quotes that resonate in my head are, "I have trained my mind and now my body will follow" and "my heart and my mind will carry me when my limbs are too weak."   I've listened to that speech at least five times today, and its rally cry, "Who am I? I AM A CHAMPION!" carried me through my workout today.

Give it a listen, I promise you won't be disappointed.